SILOAM SPRINGS, Ark. -- The John Brown University men's basketball team's offense kept rolling Tuesday morning (Nov. 4), posting its second high-scoring output in a 112-65 rout of Ozark Christian (Mo.) inside Bill George Arena in the Golden Eagles' inaugural Scream Game.
The Golden Eagles (2-0) never trailed in front of the energized matinee crowd of 900 elementary school students, shooting 52 percent (45-of-87) from the floor and 37 percent from deep (16-of-43) while assisting on 23 of 45 made baskets. Six players scored in double figures, and the JBU bench poured in 57 points as the hosts overwhelmed the Ambassadors in a wire-to-wire performance.
Junior Marko Malekinusic led the balanced attack with 15 points, hitting five threes and pulling down eight rebounds. Senior Donovan Lovelace added 14 points on 5-of-7 shooting, and senior Trae Oetting finished with 13.
Off the bench, sophomore Carter Carbonell matched Oetting's output and dished out four assists, while freshman Maliq Sosa added 11 points and senior Connor Kern contributed 10 points and seven rebounds.
After Ozark Christian pulled within 19-11, the Golden Eagles detonated a 29-0 run spanning more than seven minutes to blow the game open. From the 12:46 mark to 5:18 in the first half, JBU went 12-of-23 from the field and forced seven turnovers while holding the Ambassadors scoreless. Senior LePra George led the surge with seven points, Oetting added four, and six others chipped in as the Blue and Gold lead ballooned to 48-11.
John Brown built a 58-30 halftime lead behind nine first-half triples and 51-percent shooting. The Golden Eagles carried that dominance throughout, outscoring the Ambassadors 63-28 in the paint and converting 21 offensive rebounds into 28 second-chance points.
John Brown never slowed after halftime, shooting 52 percent in the second period and pushing the margin to as many as 50 points, 106-56, with 4:39 left. The Golden Eagle bench continued to pour it on, accounting for 39 of the team's 54 second-half points as the hosts closed out its second win in four days.
Defensively, JBU forced 18 turnovers and converted them into 30 points, while limiting the visitors to 38-percent shooting (23-of-61) and 25 percent from beyond the arc. The Golden Eagles committed only five turnovers of its own and finished with a 16-0 edge in fast-break scoring.
Dylan Pugh led Ozark Christian (0-1) with 20 points on 8-of-11 shooting, while Carter Brown and Curtis Davenport each added 11 in OCC's exhibition loss.
Through two games, John Brown is averaging 103.0 points per contest while shooting 51 percent from the field and 36 percent from three-point range. The Golden Eagles are also posting a +21 rebounding margin and dishing out 18 assists per game.
JBU continues its season-opening non-conference homestand by welcoming Arkansas Baptist to Bill George Arena on Thursday night (Nov. 6) for a 7:05 p.m. tip. Fans can catch the action live on the SAC Sports Network and the Urban Edge Network.
FOLLOW THE GOLDEN EAGLES
Don't miss a minute of the latest action surrounding JBU Athletics by following the Golden Eagles on Twitter (@JBUathletics), Instagram (@JBUathletics) and Facebook (/JBUathletics). Catch every Golden Eagle home game and select away games on the SAC Sports Network, available online or for download on your favorite streaming device.
